BMX CHAMPION IS YOUNGEST TO WIN PRO TITLE IN 20 YEARS.Byline: Greg Botonis Staff Writer PALMDALE - Nineteen-year-old Bubba Harris Burlin Buntster Harris[1] (b. August 7, 1985 from Palmdale, California U.S.) is an American professional "New/Current School" Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer whose prime competitive years are from 1999 to the present. Usually goes by the moniker "Bubba". began his bicycle racing bicycle racing or cycling, an internationally popular sport conducted on closed courses or the open road. Track racing takes place at a velodrome, usually a banked 1,093.6 ft (.333 km) oval. career after his parents took him to a racetrack on his seventh birthday. On the national racing circuit since age 9, he spends every day on his bike or in training at the gym to stay in top physical shape. It all paid off: Harris is the youngest professional BMX BMX abbr. bicycle motocross BMX Noun 1. bicycle motocross: stunt riding over an obstacle course on a bicycle 2. rider in 20 years to win the ABA's pro title. ``Now I have to work harder because I want to take the title a few more times before I'm done,'' said Harris, a 2003 Quartz Hill High School Quartz Hill High School is a public, co-educational high school located in Lancaster, California. Founded in 1964, it is the third oldest comprehensive high school in the Antelope Valley High School District (AVHSD). graduate. ``I have a good 15 years left of racing so I want to take it (the title) a few more times.'' Harris won the American Bicycle Association's Pro Title for BMX - bicycle motocross bicycle motocross n. A cross-country bicycle race, especially one involving young people riding bicycles designed for rough terrain. , which originated in the 1970s with bicycles racing along dirt courses over hills and jumps like off-road motorcycle racing motorcycle racing Sport of running motorcycles on tracks, closed circuits, or natural terrain. The main types are (1) road racing, conducted on a course made up wholly or partly of public roads; (2) trials, conducted both on and off the highway; (3) speedway racing, - for his performance in 27 National Series competitions against more than 200 of the world's top riders. He nearly lost that title in one of the last matches. ``He crashed in the very first main (race) and that really should have knocked him out, but he took first in the next two so that shot him back up there,'' dad Burlin Harris said. ``It was an incredible comeback.'' Winning the title had a special significance: Harris' mother, Anita, died in 2003. He wore her name on the back of his jersey during the competitions. At the championship awards ceremony, Harris turned his jersey around to show that he had won in honor of his mother. Harris credits his father as his inspiration. Persistence, training and focus are the factors for his success, he said. ``I wake up every morning and get out there and do what I need to,'' Harris said. ``I'm on my bike every single day. That's what you have to do.'' Harris teaches BMX skills to youngsters all over the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. , traveling in a big rig Big Rig was a punk band from the San Francisco Bay Area fronted by singer/songwriter Jesse Michaels. Michaels performed with the group after the break up of his previous project, Operation Ivy, and before forming the band Common Rider. with his father. ``We're on the road 200-plus days a year doing the camps,'' Burlin Harris said. ``We do them all over the country.'' On Saturday, Bubba Harris picked up the keys to a 2005 Hyundai Tucson The Hyundai Tucson is a compact crossover SUV launched in 2005 by the Korean automaker Hyundai. It shares its Elantra-based platform with the redesigned 2005 Kia Sportage. The Tucson is slotted below the Santa Fe in the lineup. , the prize for winning the championship. Hyundai is an official sponsor of the ABA. Harris was also presented with his own signature series line of bikes by his sponsor Redline. ``I've been racing since I was a little kid, so to win the title and have my own line of bikes, it's just awesome,'' Harris said. ``There's no words for it. It's every pro's dream.'' Harris said the next step is just to get back out on the track and start winning again. He has already competed in 12 matches this year: he took first in seven, and second in three. Greg Botonis, (661) 267-7802 greg.botonis(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) BMX champion Bubba Harris was given a Hyundai Tucson for winning the American Bicycle Association's pro title. Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer |
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